"Alive in the Swamp" sounds like a cheesy survival horror flick.
But it’s also an apt description for those entrepreneurs and educators slogging their way through edtech jungle, trying to figure out how to best build, deploy and assess
technology for the classroom.

In the report, authors Michael Fullan and Katelyn Donnelly (executive director of Pearson's Affordable Learning Fund) offer an Index that could serve as a research framework upon which developers and school administrators can evaluate the effectiveness of new products and implementation practices. The framework assesses innovations along three components--pedagogy, technology, systems change--and breaks them down into finer detail:

Pedagogy

Clarity and quality of intended outcome (is it clear what
the learning outcomes are? How are they measured?)

Pedagogy itself (What research is it based on? Has it been
applied successfully elsewhere?)

Quality of assessment platform (How detailed is it? Does it
offer actionable insights?)

System Change

Implementation support (How does the provider support
technology and teachers?)

Value for money (What are the cost savings for the school?
Are there hidden costs?)

Whole system change potential (Can it scale virally and
laterally across teachers and schools? Does this require extensive management
from the center?)

Technology

Quality of user experience/model design (How easy is it to
use?)

Ease of adaptation (Is it accessible via different devices
and means?)

Comprehensiveness and integration (How does the technology
integrate with the learning environment in the classroom?)

In the appendix, the authors suggest using a four-point, color-coded grading scale and offers examples of what "good" and "bad" for each of these criteria may look like. Donnelly admits there is a degree of subjectivity when it comes to assigning grades on these questions, some of which are very open-ended.

The authors applied this rubric to a dozen products and schools, including Khan Academy, LearnZillion, Rocketship and Carpe Diem. Their initial findings suggest pedagogy and system support "are the weakest part of the triangle," especially as "entrepreneurs find it more exciting and absorbing to design and build digital innovations than to grapple with a new pedagogy, not to mention...support for implementation."

Unfortunately, the authors have no plans share those specific ratings, which could serve as a useful guide for how others could apply the grading system.

Still, Donnelly reiterated that the point of the rubric is not to serve as a standard for objective reviews and ratings, but rather to "spark conversation among school leaders, principals, teachers, and education entrepreneurs."

While far from perfect, establishing a standard set of expectations and questions for schools and developers could be the critical first step towards building solutions that can impact at scale.